Guys under 5'6"?

nwilson91

We're a strange demographic - outside the "normal" range for height and therefore our target weights and all related ratios are thrown off.

At 5'4", I constantly struggle to relate what programs like these tell me I should be eating vs. burning (and therefore LOSING) to what is actually happening with my body, and I'm wondering if anyone else can relate.

I'm interested in finding out:

What are your targets/goals?
Do you have any good sources for more specific info (especially regarding plans)?
Do you have a program that works consistently?
Do you know about specific problems/issues to watch out for?

nwilson91

Guess it's just me.

kenhelms17720

Personally I am 5'10 but something you could do would be to go to your closest human performance lab.

They can run a resting metabolic rate test (you gotta fast for 12 hours though) and give you a diet analysis, body composition and a vo2 max test. Usually everything but the vo2 test runs about $150 depending on the lab.

Colleges and some hospitals have the labs. Best to just do a quick google search for local ones. It does cost a little bit of money, but it's worth it.

nwilson91

Thanks! I actually had that done 2x 15 years ago, VO2 max and all - before training for a big event and post event - but I don't think at that time they told me daily/avg caloric burn.

I work out with an HRM (Polar RS300x) to track calories on workouts, and it has a OwnIndex that the company claims is comparable to VO2 max, but I haven't yet put it to the test.

I also track bodyfat, both with a scale (an older Tanita) and circumference measurement (the numbers are individually consistent yet widely divergent, by about 8%), but haven't done the underwater weighing since the aforementioned test.

None of this helps the fact that when I set MFP lifestyle to "sedentary," only track what I work out (cardio only, based on the HRM numbers), and eat "between the lines," my results vary widely, Weeks I don't work out, but successfully diet (targeting 1lb loss/wk), I MAINTAIN weight. Weeks I work out AND diet, I can lose between 0 & 2.5lbs.

nwilson91

They did tell me METS, which is something I haven't been tracking... guess I should get on that.